And now, verily I say unto you concerning the laws of the land, it is my will that my people should observe to do all things whatsoever I command them. And that law of the land which is constitutional, supporting that principle of freedom in maintaining rights and privileges, belongs to all mankind, and is justifiable before me. Therefore, I, the Lord, justify you, and your brethren of my church, in befriending that law which is the constitutional law of the land; And as pertaining to law of man, whatsoever is more or less than this, cometh of evil. (August 6, 1833, Doctrine and Covenants 98:4-7) [The] laws and constitution of the people, which I have suffered to be established…, should be maintained for the rights and protection of all flesh, according to just and holy principles…. And for this purpose have I [the Lord] established the Constitution of this land, by the hands of A Free People By The Power Of The Father 15 wise men whom I raised up unto this very purpose. (The Lord Jesus Christ, December 16, 1833, Doctrine and Covenants 101:77, 80) [Page 14]

Have mercy, O Lord, upon all the nations of the earth; have mercy upon the rulers of our land; may those principles, which were so honorably and nobly defended, namely, the Constitution of our land, by our fathers, be established forever. (Joseph Smith, March 27, 1836, Doctrine and Covenants 109:54, Dedicatory Prayer of the Kirtland Temple) [Page 16]

[T]he government of the United States was begun under the direction of our Father in heaven, as declared by his own word of mouth to be an ensample unto the nations of the earth, and the liberties that we enjoy are pointed out in a most forceful way to the children of men…. Today this wonderful land is not only a land of liberty and hope to us, but there goes out from these shores across the mighty ocean to other peoples encouragement in the struggle that they are making, that they may have something to do with the government that directs their destinies. (George Albert Smith, September 15, 1918, Journal History of the Church, 4) [Page 34-35]

[T]hose 56 men who signed the Declaration of Independence, those who drew up the Constitution of the United States nine years later, gave to the world a concept of government which, if applied, will strike from the arms of downtrodden humanity the shackles of tyranny, and give hope, ambition, and freedom to the teeming millions throughout the world. (President David O. Mckay, Statements on Communism, 1964) [Page 40]

[The] Constitution of the United States is the basic law for all of the Americas, of Zion, as it has been defined by the Lord…. [The] great essentials of that document, the Constitution of the United States, which God Himself inspired, is the law of Zion, the Americas. So, Brethren, I wish you to understand that when we begin to tamper with the Constitution we begin to tamper with the law of Zion which God Himself set up, and no one may trifle with the word of God with impunity. (President J. Reuben Clark, October 1942, General Conference) [Page 43]

Freedom will be established for the entire human race. Therefore, it should come as no surprise to Latter-day Saints that the Lord has already established the political foundation upon which it will be built: the Constitution of the United States. Isaiah called it the law of Zion (Isaiah 2:3). Indeed, this is why the Lord told us through his Prophet Joseph Smith that the Constitution should be “maintained for the rights and protection of all flesh” (D&C 101:77), and that this sacred “principle of freedom… belongs to all mankind” (D&C 98:5). [Christopher S. Bentley, author and compiler of A GLORIOUS STANDARD FOR ALL MANKIND, Page 140]

The Lord Jesus Christ And that law of the land which is constitutional, supporting that principle of freedom in maintaining rights and privileges, belongs to all mankind, and is justifiable before me. (August 6, 1833, Doctrine and Covenants 98:5) [The] laws and constitution of the people, which I have suffered to be established…should be maintained for the rights and protection of all flesh. (The Lord Jesus Christ, December 16, 1833, Doctrine and Covenants 101:77) [Page 142]

Joseph Smith Have mercy, O Lord, upon all the nations of the earth; have mercy upon the rulers of our land; may those principles, which were so honorably and nobly defended, namely, the Constitution of our land, by our fathers, be established forever.(Joseph Smith, March 27, 1836, Doctrine and Covenants 109:54, Dedicatory Prayer of the Kirtland Temple) [Page 142] [Page 142]

I believe in a true republican theocracy…. What do I understand by a theocratic government? One in which all laws are enacted and executed in righteousness, and whose officers possess that power which proceedeth from the Almighty. That is the kind of government I allude to when I speak of a theocratic government, or the Kingdom of God upon the earth…. [Few], if any, understand what a theocratic government is. In every sense of the word, it is a republican government…but its subjects will recognize the will and dictation of the Almighty…. The Constitution and laws of the United States resemble a theocracy more closely than any government now on the earth…. The kingdom of God will be extended over the earth; and it is written, “I will make thine officers peace, and thine exactors righteousness.” [Isaiah 60:17] Is that day ever coming? It is; and the doctrine we preach leads to that point. Even now the form of the Government of the United States differs but little from that of the kingdom of God…. 144 A Glorious Standard Whoever lives to see the Kingdom of God fully established upon the earth will see a government that will protect every person in his rights…[every] class of worshipers most strictly protected in all their municipal rights and in the privileges of worshiping who, what, and when they pleased, not infringing upon the rights of others. Does any candid person in his sound judgment desire any greater liberty? (July 31, 1859, Journal of Discourses, 6:342-343, 345, 346-347) I expect to see the day when the Elders of Israel will protect and sustain civil and religious liberty and every constitutional right bequeathed to us by our fathers, and spread those rights abroad in connection with the Gospel for the salvation of all nations. I shall see this whether I live or die. (Brigham Young, July 28, 1866, Journal of Discourses, 11:262-263) [Page 143-144]

Orson Pratt It was for this purpose, then, that a republic was organized upon this continent to prepare the way for a kingdom which shall have dominion over all the earth to the ends thereof. (Orson Pratt, July 8, 1855, Journal of Discourses, 3:73) [Page 144]

[T]he Elders of Israel…have something to do with the world politically as well as religiously, that it is as much their duty to study correct political principles as well as religious…to know and comprehend the social and political interests of man, and to learn and be able to teach that which would be best calculated to promote the interests of the world. (April 13, 1862, Journal of Discourses, 9:340) I want a principle that will maintain, uphold, and stand by the rights of man, giving to all men everywhere equal rights, and that will preserve inviolate the fundamental principles of the Constitution of our country. (March 31, 1867, Journal of Discourses, 11:343) The worst wish we have to the human family is that the principles enunciated in our Constitution may reverberate over the wide earth, and spread from shore to shore, until all mankind shall be free. (Orson Pratt, December 17, 1871, Journal of Discourses, 14:267) [Page 146]

Besides the preaching of the Gospel, we have another mission, namely, the perpetuation of the free agency of man and the maintenance of liberty, freedom, and the rights of man…. The Declaration of Independence states that men are in possession of certain inalienable rights, among which are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. This belongs to us; it belongs to all humanity. I wish, and the worst wish I have for the United States, is, that they could have liberality enough to give to all men equal rights…. (Orson Pratt, April 9, 1882, Journal of Discourses, 23:63) [Page 148]

Melvin J. Ballard I want my young brethren and sisters to feel that the institutions founded and established in America are Godgiven; the constitution of the United States is a revelation from the Lord, for all the earth, and not only for America; and that the Lord has committed unto this land the mission of lifting up an ensign to the nations of the earth. (April 1917, General Conference) [The] Lord established the Constitution of the United States for the blessing of all flesh. In my soul I believe that that is part of the great Kingdom of God, the political part, for Jesus was to come as “King of kings and Lord of lords.” In the capacity of King of kings he rules in a political way, Belongs To All Mankind 151 and as Lord of lords in a spiritual way. He is the greatest statesman the world has ever seen, and that great kingdom, cut out of the mountain without hands, founded by God, has been rolling forth. Let me tell you, my weak-kneed brethren and sisters, if there are any of you here, take courage, for God’s word shall not fail when he predicted that the instrument known as the Constitution of the United States, the Spirit of Liberty established here by a few weak colonists, was his order of things for the government of men, and it should roll forth to fill the whole earth.(Melvin J. Ballard, October 1918, General Conference) [Page 150-151]

J. Reuben Clark The Constitution and its free institutions must be our ensign. For America has a destiny—a destiny to conquer the world,—not by force of arms, not by purchase and favor, for these conquests wash away, but by high purpose, by unselfish effort, by uplifting achievement, by a course of Christian living; a conquest that shall leave every nation free to move out to its own destiny; a conquest that shall bring, through the workings of our own example, the blessings of freedom and liberty to every people, without restraint or imposition or compulsion from us; a conquest that shall weld the whole earth together in one great brotherhood in a reign of mutual patience, forbearance, and charity, in a reign of peace to which we shall lead all others by the persuasion of our own righteous example. (J. Reuben Clark, February 24, 1944, Los Angeles, California) [Page 152]

Harold B. Lee The question is now whether or not we can make a Republican form of government work, not merely for America but for the world, as all other nations under Heaven may be persuaded of the blessings of freedom enjoyed by the people of this land and to adopt similar governmental systems, thus fulfilling the ancient prophecy of Isaiah “that out of Zion might go forth the law and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem.” (Harold B. Lee, address delivered May 31, 1953, and published June 6, 1953, Church News, “I Dare You to Believe,”

In the wisdom of the Almighty, this ensign of liberty was raised to the nations to fulfill an ancient prophecy that “out of Zion [should] go forth the law, and the word of the Belongs To All Mankind 153 Lord from Jerusalem” (Isaiah 2:3). How could this be? The answer is clear: through the Constitution, kings and rulers and the peoples of all nations under heaven may be informed of the blessings enjoyed by the people of this land of Zion by reason of their freedom under Divine guidance, and be constrained to adopt similar governmental systems and thus fulfill the ancient law to which I have already referred. (Harold B. Lee, November 25, 1963, Salt Lake Tabernacle) [Page 152-153]

Ezra Taft Benson This is a great and glorious nation, with a God-given, divine mission to perform for liberty-loving people everywhere. This mission cannot be performed unless America is kept strong and virile, unless this people adhere to those eternal principles embodied in the gospel and in the Constitution of our land. (Ezra Taft Benson, April 1953, General Conference) [Page 153-154]